Closer image of Lovejoy

Another clear night and so another opportunity to capture more of Lovejoy's tail.  It appears that Lovejoy is actually a little brighter now, possibly due to more transparent sky conditions, and because it continues to rise higher into the sky, now placed near the zenith in a darker sky.

After having some success with my Canon 50D and telephoto lens I decided to try and use my guidescope as an imaging scope (it is an 80mm x 400mm refractor afterall). So I attached the Canon and took 82 30 second images. Four were not processed because of image issues (bird flew around the scope!) leaving me with an effective exposure of 38 minutes at ISO1600. Processed in PixInsight and then PSP I removed as much of the noise and light pollution as I could. The result is rather good if I say so myself.

Comet Lovejoy (C/2014 Q2)
January 19, 2015 8:30PM
76x30sec ISO 1600 Orion ST80 Refractor  (80mmx400mm)

Lovejoy is now leaving the inner solar system, increasing it's distance to both sun and earth, and so will be dimming as the days go on. Soon the moon will make a reappearance and foil any more real attempts to image the comet and capture subtle details in the tail. We'll see if the weather cooperates in the later part of the week to try once more.